After a wild first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, here’s a rundown of how the 16 regionals played out.
Through To Super Regionals
Knoxville Regional: Tennessee
Tennessee outscored its opponents 34-12 on the weekend and generally handled its regional the way you would expect of the No. 1 overall seed. Cal Stark homered three times on the weekend (his only hits of the regional) and Dylan Dreiling went 7-for-13 with two doubles and two home runs to lead the offense. Tennessee advanced to super regionals for the fourth straight year.
Next up: Knoxville Super Regional vs. Evansville
Lexington Regional: Kentucky
Kentucky swept through its regional with relative ease. The Wildcats built an 8-0 lead in Friday’s opener against Western Michigan only to see the Broncos storm back to make it a close game late. Kentucky held on for a 10-8 victory and then rolled through the next two days thanks to some excellent pitching. The Wildcats held Illinois and Indiana State to one run in two games, including a 5-0 shutout against the Sycamores in Sunday’s final. Kentucky is through to super regionals for the second straight year and third time in seven seasons. The Wildcats had never won a regional before 2017.
Next up: Lexington Super Regional vs. Oregon State
College Station Regional: Texas A&M
A&M swept through College Station to advance to super regionals for the second time in three seasons under coach Jim Schlossnagle. But it wasn’t easy for the Aggies. They found themselves in a rock fight Saturday night against Texas, winning 4-2 in 11 innings. A&M trailed 2-1 before tying the game in the eighth and pulling ahead in the 11th. With the dramatic win, the Aggies improved to 34-3 at Blue Bell Park this season. They’ll again have home-field advantage next weekend in super regionals.
Next up: College Station Super Regional vs. Oregon
Chapel Hill Regional: North Carolina
UNC won its regional in thrilling fashion, coming back to beat LSU, 4-3, in 10 innings Monday. The Tar Heels trailed, 3-2, going into the ninth inning but tied the game and then pushed ahead in the 10th inning, taking advantage of a two-out error and then getting the go-ahead hit from Alex Madera. All weekend long, the Tar Heels absorbed punches from their opponents Long Island and LSU, but always had an answer. UNC needed a ninth-inning comeback Friday night to beat the Sharks on Gavin Gallaher’s walk-off grand slam. Vance Honeycutt hit two clutch home runs Saturday against LSU in the winner’s bracket game and after LSU won Sunday night to force a rematch, the Tar Heels found a way to grind out a win in the regional final. The Tar Heels are going to super regionals for the second time in three years.
Next up: Chapel Hill Super Regional vs. West Virginia
Fayetteville Regional: Kansas State
On Saturday, K-State scored one of the biggest upsets of the weekend when it beat Arkansas and ace Hagen Smith, 7-6. The Wildcats scored six runs against Smith in the fifth inning—marking just the third time in the All-American’s career he allowed six runs in a game—and made that big inning hold up. K-State finished the job Sunday, beating Southeast Missouri State 7-2 to win just their second regional in program history and head to super regionals for the first time since 2013.
Next up: Charlottesville Super Regional vs. Virginia
Clemson Regional: Clemson
The Tigers were pushed hard on the first two days of the weekend and needed to score a run in the ninth inning each day to beat High Point and Coastal Carolina, winning both games 4-3. Comebacks and late-game heroics are nothing new for Clemson, which has lived on the edge for much of the season. The Tigers are 11-4 in one-run games, and 25 of their 44 wins have required comebacks. Clemson didn’t need a comeback in Sunday’s finale, which it won 12-5 against Coastal to advance to super regionals for the first time since 2010.
Next up: Clemson Super Regional vs. Florida
Athens Regional: Georgia
Georgia got pushed hard both Friday against Army and Sunday against Georgia Tech, but it answered the bell and swept through the regional. Friday’s opener was a back-and-forth game, with the Bulldogs finally pushing ahead for good with a run in the eighth inning for an 8-7 win. After an 11-2 drubbing against UNC Wilmington on Saturday, Georgia took on in-state rival Georgia Tech in the final. The Yellow Jackets led most of the game, but Georgia pulled even in the ninth before pushing three runs across in the 10th, with Corey Collins providing the big swing with a two-run double. Georgia held off a comeback attempt in the bottom half of the inning and won, 8-6. The Bulldogs advance to super regionals for the first time since 2008, doing so in their first season under coach Wes Johnson.
Next up: Athens Super Regional vs. NC State
Tallahassee Regional: Florida State
Florida State mostly kept things low stress this weekend as it swept through the regional. The Seminoles didn’t trail in either of their first two games—a 7-2 win against Stetson and a 5-2 win against UCF (a game that featured a 12-strikeout performance from ace Jamie Arnold). They did eventually fall behind UCF in Sunday’s final and were down 2-0 going into the fifth, when they removed all doubt. Florida State exploded for nine runs in the inning and went on to win 12-4. The Seminoles advanced to super regionals for the first time since 2019.
Next up: Tallahassee Super Regional vs. UConn
Norman Regional: UConn
UConn knocked off host Oklahoma, 7-1, in Monday’s finale. The Huskies had an impressive weekend, starting with a 4-1 win against Duke on Friday. They then beat Oklahoma, 4-1, in Saturday’s winner’s bracket game. After a 6-4 loss Sunday that forced Monday’s rematch, the Huskies left no doubt Monday, silencing the Sooners’ offense behind Gabe Van Emon (7.1 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K). UConn advanced to super regionals for the second time in three seasons.
Next up: Tallahassee Super Regional vs. Florida State
Raleigh Regional: NC State
NC State swept through the weekend and never trailed in any of its three games. The Wolfpack simply handled their business, beating Bryant 9-2, South Carolina 6-4 and James Madison 5-3. The pitching staff allowed a total of nine runs on 17 hits, with the rotation of Sam Highfill, Dominic Fritton and Logan Whittaker combining to hold opposing hitters to six runs on 11 hits in 17 innings. NC State advances to super regionals for the second time in four years.
Next up: Athens Super Regional vs. Georgia
Stillwater Regional: Florida
Florida came through the loser’s bracket to win a road regional for just the third time in program history. The Gators lost Saturday to host Oklahoma State but then won three straight, first eliminating Nebraska and then beating the Cowboys twice. Florida has had trouble on the mound throughout the season (its 6.13 team ERA is the worst of coach Kevin O’Sullivan’s tenure) but it locked in against Oklahoma State on Sunday and Monday. The Gators held the Cowboys’ powerful offense to four runs on 11 hits with junior righthanders Brandon Neely (5.2 scoreless) and Fisher Jameson (3.1 perfect) leading the way on Sunday and Monday, respectively.
Next up: Clemson Super Regional vs. Clemson
Charlottesville Regional: Virginia
Virginia swept through the weekend, beating Mississippi State twice. That was impressive on its own, but the way the Cavaliers won this weekend was particularly notable. Virginia has the best offense in the country and came into the weekend averaging 9.7 runs per game. Its pitching staff, however, had not been close to that level. But this weekend, Virginia held its opponents to eight runs, including an excellent start from Jay Woolfolk (8 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 7 K) in Sunday’s final. If Virginia’s step forward offensively is sustainable, it becomes one of the more dangerous teams in the tournament.
Next up: Charlottesville Super Regional vs. Kansas State
Tucson Regional: West Virginia
West Virginia swept through Tucson to win a regional for the first time in program history. Ace Derek Clark set the tone for the weekend when he threw a complete game to beat Dallas Baptist 4-1 in the opener on Friday. He held the Patriots to just one run on four hits and no walks. Tyler Switalski (7.2 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K) followed suit Saturday in a 5-2 win against Grand Canyon before things got more offensive in Sunday’s finale when the Mountaineers collected 17 hits in a 10-6 victory. West Virginia will hit the road again next weekend for super regionals.
Next up: Chapel Hill Super Regional vs. North Carolina
Santa Barbara Regional: Oregon
Pitching dominated the Santa Barbara Regional and Oregon’s staff rose to the challenge. The Ducks held their opponents to five runs on 16 hits over three games, capped by Kevin Seitter’s four-hit shutout of UC Santa Barbara in Sunday’s finale. The righthander struck out seven batters and scattered four hits, a walk and three hit batters in a 3-0 victory. Oregon has now won a regional in back-to-back years and done so while going on the road both times. The Ducks will hit the road again next weekend, travelling to College Station.
Next up: College Station Super Regional vs. Texas A&M
Corvallis Regional: Oregon State
Oregon State swept through its regional but had to wait until Monday to complete the job after rain forced Sunday’s nightcap to be suspended in the fourth inning. The Beavers finished the sweep with an 11-6 victory against UC Irvine and flexed their offensive might all weekend, scoring 26 runs over the three games. Outfielder Micah McDowell (8-for-13) and second baseman Travis Bazzana (4-for-11, 2 HR) led the way for the Beavers. They advanced to super regionals for the second time in three seasons.
Next up: Lexington Super Regional vs. Kentucky
Greenville Regional: Evansville
Evansville is the tournament’s Cinderella as the No. 4 seed beat host East Carolina twice to win a regional for the first time in program history. The Purple Aces started the weekend 2-0 before falling to ECU on Sunday night, setting up a winner-take-all final on Monday. Evansville had to erase a 5-2 deficit in the fifth inning and took the lead in the sixth on a three-run home run from Mark Shallenberger. Evansville got five scoreless innings of relief from Max Hansmann Shane Harris to close out the game. The Purple Aces have won nine of their last 10 games and now head to Knoxville to take on No. 1 overall seed Tennessee.
Next up: Knoxville Super Regional vs. Tennessee
